Chapter 3

Daniel and Lorraine didn't go quietly.

They hired a high-powered lawyer. Filed a countersuit. Claimed I was emotionally unstable. Claimed I'd hacked into Daniel's accounts. Claimed the security footage was doctored.

They told everyone I was a gold-digger. That I'd married Daniel for his money. That I'd fabricated evidence to steal his company.

The press picked it up. LOCAL ATTORNEY ACCUSED OF FABRICATING ABUSE EVIDENCE.

My firm stood by me. Janet made sure of that. But the stress was enormous.

I got death threats. My car was keyed. Someone threw a brick through my office window.

Daniel's restaurant employees started calling me. Telling me stories. How Daniel had screamed at staff. How Lorraine would come in and demand free meals. How money was always tight, even when the restaurants were full.

One former manager told me Daniel had been skimming cash for years. Not just from the company—from the restaurants themselves. Underreporting revenue. Pocketing the difference.

The IRS was going to love that.

I sent everything to the forensic accountant. The case grew. And grew.

Then Lorraine made a mistake.

She showed up at my office. Screaming. Demanding to see me. Security escorted her out. But not before she threatened me. Loudly. In front of witnesses.

"I'll make sure you never work again!" she screamed. "You'll regret the day you married into this family!"

I had security footage of that too.

I added it to the restraining order file. The judge extended it. Lorraine was arrested for violating it.

That's when Daniel started to panic.

He called me. Forty-seven times. I didn't answer. He showed up at my house. The police came. He was arrested again.

His lawyer called. Wanted to settle. Offered me the house. Half the savings. Full ownership of my car.

I said no.

"I want everything," I told his lawyer. "And I want him in prison. There's no settlement. There's no deal. This goes to trial."

His lawyer was quiet. Then, "You're making a mistake, Ms. Bennett."

"No," I said. "Your client made the mistake. He just didn't know it until now."

I hung up.

Janet looked at me from across the office. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Every single second," I said.

And I was. Because for eight months, I'd been the one afraid. The one walking on eggshells. The one being told to learn my place.

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Now they were afraid.

And it felt like justice.